


Shelter From the Storm

by SaltySpice



Category: Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon), Tangled (2010)
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, Hurt/Comfort, Post-Episode: s03e19 Plus Est En Vous
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-26
Updated: 2021-01-26
Packaged: 2021-03-11 23:22:27
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,768
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29000652
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SaltySpice/pseuds/SaltySpice
Summary: Cassandra seeks shelter from a thunderstorm back in the castle, where Rapunzel is awaiting her.
Relationships: Cassandra & Rapunzel (Disney: Tangled), Cassandra/Rapunzel (Disney: Tangled), Eugene Fitzherbert | Flynn Rider/Rapunzel
Comments: 1
Kudos: 37





	Shelter From the Storm

**Author's Note:**

> Just wanted to pop in and say I'm very new to writing fanfiction and general, in fact this is this first one I've ever published. Since im such a beginner I'm sure I've made a ton of mistakes, so don't think this will be amazing.

The day is gray and dreary, unusual for sunny Corona. The rain falls continuously, never waxing or waning. It pitter-patters against the lonely wooded road. 

Cassandra is in the thick of it, clothing drenched, hair sopping wet. She clings to Fidella's reigns, cursing her decision to bring along only a small umbrella, which has already been snatched away by a gust of wind. 

She had been planning to show up unannounced at the Castle, a surprise visit that no doubt would make the princesses ecstatic. 

But the gloomy weather seems to have seeped into Cassandra's own mood, the air seems heavy and dense, and her thoughts are foggy. 

It doesn't help that the voices are back. 

They had first begun to speak years ago, the day she had entered that mysterious room in the Shell House. The same voices that taunted her now had been calling to her, just beyond the open door, their words incoherent yet still intriguing. She had listened to them. 

They were not always there, not audibly at least, though Cass could never shake the feeling that the owners of the whispers were never far behind her. She could usually will them to be silent, or at least quieter. 

No matter how hard she concentrates today, however, their voices won't fade, and the garbled words claw at her thoughts. 

"I'm just... so tired, Fidella," She mutters, her words slightly slurred. 

It's as though all of her energy has been sapped out of her, and the whispers only grow louder, making it hard to form full thoughts without them being drowned out by the cacophony in her head. 

"Why now? Why me?" She mutters briefly to herself, but she knows her thoughts are selfish. You brought this upon yourself. She reminds herself, lifting her head high. She can't be weak. That's not who she is anymore.

Vaguely, out of the corner of her eye, Cassandra spots the castle, shrouded by the nighttime sky. She is desperate to take refuge inside it's walls, but does not want Rapunzel to see her like this, disheveled and confused. It's a battle between pride and fatigue, and fatigue wins out. 

She stumbles through the castle's gate, and is led inside by some slightly alarmed maids, who hurriedly lead Fidella away to an empty stall in the stable.

"Princess Rapunzel, you have a visitor." The words drift to Cassandra's ears, down the staircase that leads into the tower where Rapunzel sleeps. 

For a few moments, silence. Suddenly there are frantic footfalls, and a cheery Princess comes into view. 

"Cassandra!" She cries, looking on the verge of tears, acting as though she hadn't seen her just 4 months prior. "You're back!"

She pulls the traveler into a tight bear hug before the woman even has a chance to say hello. Suddenly, the girl lets go of her, and takes a step backward. 

"Oh- Cass, you look..." She pauses to consider her words. " ...Exhausted. I hope you're feeling alright, come on, I'm sure we can find you a nice room to stay in."

"It's- I'm fine Rapunzel, but thank you. I would appreciate that." 

The reassurance couldn't be further from the truth, but Cassandra is secretly proud for being able to hide her discomfort so well. She climbs up the twisting palace staircases and cavernous hallways, running a hand along the railing. 

The walls are familiar to her, and they invoke a lot of memories. The memories are mostly happy, but all have a bitter side to them. Normally she would be able to handle the double-edged blade, but the never-ceasing whispers make it hard to handle with care. The cuts sting more than they usually would. Rapunzel's gentle words distract Cassandra from her thoughts, a thing they have a knack for doing at times both convenient and not as much so.

"Are you sure you're alright Cassandra? You're awfully pale." A pause. Rapunzel laces her fingers around Cass's. Cassandra's fingers are calloused and clammy from a life on the road, but she does not let go. 

"I don't know, maybe I have a cold or something. I've got a bit of a headache I guess." 

It's an answer, and while it is not a complete one, Rapunzel accepts it. She kisses Cass lightly on the cheek, a gesture she knows the weary woman will appreciate. The door to an empty room opens with a click, swinging backward to reveal a hideaway Cassandra knows well. Even tired and with a pounding headache, she recognizes her cabinet full of weapons and the empty bed that sits in the middle of the space, neatly made. It clearly hasn't been used in months.

"My old room," 

The princess nods. "We had it fixed up. Just in case you'd ever drop by. I hope it's ok," 

"It's great, Raps. You didn't have to do all this."

"It's really my pleasure. Anything for you, Cass."

She says the last few words with such softness that it almost makes Cassandra's heart melt. Rapunzel has a way of doing that to her. This closeness, this warmth, it's enough to make the whispers in her mind fade into a manageable babble. 

"Don't let Eugene hear you saying that." She smirks, taking a seat on a wooden chair near the bed. She's still in her wet clothes, and she doesn't want to soak the bed's covers through. "He's always suspected that you like me more than him."

"Caaass, don't say that. You know very well that I like him just as well I like you." 

"Alright, alright. Now will you leave me be for a second, I want to get out of these soaking clothes." She tugs at a damp sleeve for emphasis. 

"Ok, I'll leave you alone for a little, but not for long. I don't want to spend even more time away from you. Tell me when you're done." 

Cass rolls her eyes at Rapunzel's sappiness, but smiles to herself, pulling a crisp shirt over her head. She's really missed that stupid princess. She feels good enough at first, but after a few minutes creep by, she feels the voices closing in on her again. The fact that she's alone in her room now really hits her, and the whispers are louder than ever. She tries to shrug them off, but this grows harder and harder, and soon enough she can hardly breathe, her breath coming out in strangled gasps. Thoughts tumble out in a disconnected mess. 

_at least I-_

_shouldn't have come back-_

_help me-_

_head hurts so bad-_

_what are they saying-_

Her mind is a swirling mess, but even so she cannot miss the one message that is being repeated again and again, the voices are no longer a cacophony of different phrases and words, so many and so frantic that she could never hear a single message- 

_You'll never be equal to Rapunzel._

It reminds her of her own voice, echoed back at her, sharp and full of unchecked pain. Every time the words are repeated, she feels another stab of grief. Cass doesn't know why it hurts so much, and that does nothing to ease the pain. Every insecurity she has ever felt washes over her again, the resentment at being the princesses' servant, the disappointment that made her stomach sink, time and time again as her dad told her she was not ready, she had to wait. The creeping worries that told her she'd never be good enough, that she wasn't important that maybe... maybe she had no destiny. 

It's all too much to bear and Cass would be willing to do anything to make it stop. After all, her worst moments are being relieved, and no simple explanation of why comes to her mind. Why now? When everything is going alright, why do they come back? She agonizes over this question, turning it around in her mind, examining every angle she still doesn't know. 

How does everything feel so bad when everything is going so well?

"Cassandra!" A familiar voice breaks through it all, one that is caring and full of worry, one that reminds her that she's not in her memories, she's here. With Rapunzel. 

"Rapunzel," She croaks in response, unable to say anything more. 

"Oh, thank goodness you're alright. I was worried about you- you just seemed so unwell when you first arrived and then I came back and it- you- it was like you were in another world, you were shaking and crying and-" The words tumble out of her, and the fear that she carries for the traveller is apparent in her eyes. 

"I was crying?" Cass murmurs, raising a hand and brushing it against her cheek. Her fingers come off of it damp. She doesn't cry much. Seemingly unable to hold it back any longer, the princess suddenly bursts forward, wrapping her arms almost too tightly around Cassandra's torso. 

"Oh Cass, I love you so much," Whispers Rapunzel, a tear trickling down her face. 

"I love you too." 

They sit there in silence for a minute, which Cassandra uses as a chance to collect herself. After a beat of comfortable silence, Cass clears her throat. She's going to say something. After all, she reasons, the reason it got this bad is only because I let it get there. As soon as she thinks it, she knows her reasoning is sound, although she hadn't even considered it up until that point. There's a lump in her throat, but she swallows it, because she can't be weak. That's not who she is anymore.

"Sometimes... I hear things. " 

It's not a huge start, but it propels her forward. She explains everything to the princess, the voices clawing at her consciousness, ow she would always ignore them, even when they got dangerously loud, how she would mentally block any thoughts about what happened before, about the pain that she had felt. How it had felt so easy to bury her troubles, pretend that since they were in the past they would soon fully fade away. 

It feels good. Better than she had expected, pouring her heart out like this, although it's unlike her, and still to some extent uncomfortable. It feels like, well, not exactly a burden being lifted off her shoulders, but like a burden being shared by another pair of them. She knows that the voices aren't gone for good, that her painful feelings aren't gone for good, but she also knows that she doesn't have to face them alone. And that's what makes the difference.

"Cassandra?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you for telling me all this."

"Thank you for listening."

**Author's Note:**

> For some context- this takes place like a few years after plus est un vous. Cassandra has come back to visit Corona a few times before- but she has never slept in the castle itself. (I like to imagine she usually stays with her dad, but she couldn't bring herself to bother him this time)
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it. If you liked it, great, I will probably be posting more content in the future. Bye :)


End file.
